English Literary Techniques Flashcards
Allegory
A story with a double meaning, it is an extended metaphor where objects, persons and actions in a narrative are equated with meanings outside of the narrative. It could have moral, social, religious or political significance
Allusion
A brief but purposeful references, within a literary text, to a person, place, event, or to another work of literature.
Alliteration
The repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession whose purpose is to provide an audible pulse that gives a piece of writing a lulling, lyrical, and/or emotive effect.
Analogy
A literary device that explains an unfamiliar or complex topic by comparing it to a familiar topic
Anecdote
a short, self-contained story that usually highlights one particular theme, lesson, or aspect of a person’s character
Antropomorphism
the attribution of human characteristics to nonhuman objects.
Apostrophe
refers to a speech or address to a person who is not present or to a personified object
Assonance
the repetition of vowel sounds in words that are close together in a sentence or verse
Consonance
refers to the repetition of consonant sounds in successive words
Contrast
when two or more different or oppositional ‘things’ are deliberately placed to accentuate their differences.
Dialogue
any communication between two characters
Diction
choice of words, especially with regard to correctness, clearness, or effectiveness.
Includes:
Formal, informal, colloquial and slang
Formal Diction
Formal diction is the use of sophisticated language, without slang or colloquialisms. Formal diction sticks to grammatical rules and uses complicated syntax—the structure of sentences.
Informal diction
Informal diction is more conversational and often used in narrative literature. This casual vernacular is representative of how people communicate in real life, which gives an author freedom to depict more realistic characters.
Colloquial Diction
Colloquial diction is conversational in nature and can be seen through the use of informal words that represent a specific place or time.
Slang Diction
Slang diction contains words that are very specific to a region and time, and have been recently coined.
Emotive Language
language designed to target an emotion – positive, negative, sometimes deliberately neutral – and to make the audience respond on an emotional level to the idea or issue being presented
Enjambment
the continuation of a sentence or phrase from one line of poetry to the next.
(typically in poetry)
Form
a way of categorizing literature based on its structure or purpose.
Foreshadowing
a narrative device in which suggestions or warnings about events to come are dropped or planted
Flashback
interrupts that chronological sequence, the front line action or “present” line of the story, to show readers a scene that unfolded in the past.
Truncated sentences
Short sentences
parataxis
the placing of two clauses next to one another without the use of subordinating conjunctions or coordinating conjunctions to clarify the relationship between the clauses.
parataxis
the placing of two clauses next to one another without the use of subordinating conjunctions or coordinating conjunctions to clarify the relationship between the clauses.
Hyperbole
a figure of speech that is an intentional exaggeration for emphasis or comic effect.
Imagery
Imagery refers to mental pictures in your mind, or to words and descriptions that create mental pictures.
Visual Imagery
It uses qualities of how something looks visually to best create an image in the reader’s head
Gustatory Imagery
imagery related to the sense of taste
Tactile imagery
Tactile imagery is used to describe something by focusing on aspects that can be felt or touched.
Auditory imagery
This form of poetic imagery appeals to the reader’s sense of hearing or sound.
Olfactory Imagery
Olfactory imagery engages the sense of smell.
Abstract imagery
the language we use to describe qualities that cannot be perceived by our five senses
Irony
whenever a person says something or does something that departs from what they (or we) expect them to say or do
Juxtaposition
Juxtaposition is when you place two concepts or objects next to or near each other, thereby highlighting their innate differences and similarities.
Metaphor
Metaphor is a comparison between two things that are otherwise unrelated.
It makes a comparison by directly relating one thing to another unrelated thing
Metonymy
figure of speech in which the name of an object or concept is replaced with a word closely related to or suggested by the original
For example, ‘crown’ to mean ‘king’ - the power of the crown was mortally weakened
High Modality
Expression of something being certain
Low Modality
Expression of something being uncertain
Motif
a repeated pattern—an image, sound, word, or symbol that comes back again and again within a particular story.
Onomatopoeia
the naming of a thing or action by imitation of natural sounds
I.e. Hiss or Buzz
Paradox
a statement that appears to contradict itself but upon further inspection reveals a deeper truth, meaning, or joke
Pathetic Fallacy
the attribution of human emotion to inanimate objects, nature, or animals. Writers use the pathetic fallacy to evoke a specific mood or feeling that usually reflects their own or a character’s internal state.
It is typically the attribution of human emotions to the environment. I.e. the rainy weather is a pathetic fallacy for a gloomy mood
First Person narrative
The telling of a story in the grammatical first person in the perspective of ‘I’ –> reveals individual experiences
Second person
In second person point of view the reader is part of the story. The narrator describes the reader’s actions, thoughts, and background using “you.” It’s all about how you look at it.
Creates a sense of a collective experience
Third person
The voice of the telling appears to be akin to that of the author him- or herself. Any story told in the grammatical third person without using ‘I’ or ‘We’
Could be used to convey both collective and individual experiences
Repetition
the use of the same word or phrase multiple times
Rhyme
The repetition of syllables, typically at the end of a verse line
Satire
the art of making someone or something look ridiculous, raising laughter in order to embarrass, humble, or discredit its targets.
Simile
a type of figurative language that describes something by comparing it to something else with the words: ‘like’ or ‘as’
Symbolism
the idea that things represent other things
I.e. colour red symbolises anger
Syntax - sentence structure
the set of rules that determines the arrangement of words in a sentence. It can be used to convey the personality of the narrator
Complex syntax
Can be used as a marker for high education. Implies a narrative voice that is well educated
Simple syntax
Might be an indicator for lower education, as might fragmented or incomplete syntax
Tense
Tense is a grammatical category by means of which some natural languages express the temporal location of the event described by the sentence in which the grammatical tense occurs
Tone
the attitude that a character or narrator or author takes towards a given subject.
Zoomorphism
to assign animal qualities to a non-animal subject, like a human being, inanimate object, or idea.
Personification
a type of metaphor that describes non-humans’ looks, actions, and purposes with language typically reserved for human characters.
Anaphora
The repetition of words or phrases in a group of sentences, clauses, or poetic lines.
Synecdoche
figure of speech in which a part represents the whole
For example, ‘wheels’ refers to a vehicle - Nice wheels you have there
‘Hired Hands’ - workers
‘The captain commands one hundred sails’ - Sails is used to refer to ships, and ships being the thing which a sail is a part of
Vignette
a literary device that bring us deeper into a story. Vignettes step away from the action momentarily to zoom in for a closer examination of a particular character, concept, or place.
Dramatic Irony
When the audience knows more than the character.
Soliloquy
a monologue that is delivered when the character is alone.
Euphemism
a word or phrase that softens an uncomfortable topic. It uses figurative language to refer to a situation without having to confront it.
For example, if someone was recently fired, they might say they are between jobs, a common euphemism for being unemployed.
Jargon
Potentially confusing words and phrases used in an occupation, trade, or field of study.
Useful in characterisation of the individual
Dialect
form of writing that shows the accent and way people talk in a particular region
Double entendre
phrase that expresses double meanings, the purpose of using double entendre is usually to articulate one thing perfectly and indirectly.
Oxymoron
it is a rhetorical term that describes words or phrases that, when placed together, create paradoxes or contradictions.
Extended metaphor
a version of metaphor that extends over the course of multiple lines, paragraphs, or stanzas of prose or poetry
Cumulative Listing
a sentence that begins with an independent clause and then adds subordinate clauses
Essentially, you use words, phrases, and clauses to expand on or refine the main idea of the sentence.
For example, ‘Today, I had to go shopping, eating, singing, play sports and even more!’
tricolon
a rhetorical device involving three words or groups of words with the same grammatical structure, such as three nouns or three prepositional phrases or three sentences.
For example:
‘We cannot dedicate. We cannot consecrate. We cannot hallow. ‘
Linear Structure
A linear or chronological structure is where the story is told in the order it happens
Non linear Structure
A non-linear plot is a storytelling technique in which a narrative is told out of chronological order.
parallel plot
Parallel storylines – also called parallel narratives or parallel plots – are story structures where the writer incorporates two or more separate stories
Diptych structure
Two different themes discussed in a narrative?!
Power of three
The ‘rule of three’ in writing is based on groups of three items being more memorable, emotionally resonant, and persuasive than simply one or two.
